Stampede! Poems to Celebrate the Wild Side of School

Citation

Salas, Laura Purdie, and Steven Salerno. Stampede!: Poems to Celebrate the Wild Side of School. New York: Clarion Books, 2009. ISBN: 0618914889

Poetic Elements

The author has put together a rousing collection of 18 poems that are full of imagery and figurative language in depicting various school scenarios with students represented as animals within the poems. In this appealing collection the poet's meaning varies by poem, and what I find so imaginative is how she captures so many different school experiences and some of the many moods a student might feel during the course of a day. The sense imagery used within, such as the “buzz, flitter-tumble” of the bees in one poem and the “clomping, stomping, splashing” of a hog in another will appeal to elementary-aged students, who relate well to onomatopoeia and similes. While the author makes use of end rhyme and follows an ABCB scheme almost exclusively, the emphasis on the last consonant gives each of the poems a fun, lyrical sound that lends itself to easy memorization by the students and replication of form should they decide to compose their own wild side poem.

Appeal and Overall Quality

The fact that this is a highly appealing collection of poetry is due as much to the illustrations as it is to the poems themselves. For one thing, the topic of school, and the varying scenes from a school day are all relatable to students. Whether it's the nervousness of being the new kid in school, the boisterous energy of heading out the door at the end of the day, or the anxiety one might feel when not adequately prepared for class, the poet has made them all relatable to students. Assigning a mouse to the new kid in school, the elephant heading out the door, and a turtle hiding when trying not to be seen are fitting comparisons that students will enjoy. The illustrations by Steven Salerno reflect the imagery created by the poet's words in bright, bold colors with pictures that are more cartoonish that realistic. Additionally, there is ample opportunity for discussion of these poems, discussing how emotions are expressed through words, asking for suggestions as to how else students might express that same emotion, and discovering examples of similes and figurative language.

Layout

Generally the poems are placed on a two page layout, which is fitting since the illustrations are as much a part of the experience. There are just three examples withinj the book where a two page spread has a different poem on facing pages. While it doesn't contain a table of contents or index, I don't think this particular collection needs one. It is, all together, a school day experience. The poems do not follow a beginning of the day to dismissal format. They are placed in a random order, just as students can quickly find themselves in a differing situation from 10 minutes ago. This is part of the charm of this collection.

Spotlight Poem

Swarm

We crowd the empty schoolyard,

a flood of bumblebees.

We buzz and flitter-tumble,

trade gossip on the breeze.

I brought a kickball-

want to play?

I wonder what's

for lunch today.

When the doors swing open wide,

we bumblebees all fly inside.

-Laura Purdie Salas

Follow-Up Activity

While my initial thought was to use the entire book with a class, reading through them and helping them find which animal they most related to, this assignment asked to pick just one. As such, I would pick Swarm. When I used to teach 2^nd grade my students called me Mrs. B. because my name was long, and I decorated with a bee theme. I would use this poem at the beginning of the day, as they come into the classroom. I could see the students coming up with their own rhymes for what the bumblebees are saying to eachother. Instead of “I brought a kickball-want to play? I wonder what's for lunch today.” they could work in pairs to come up with an alternate conversation. “I've got my jump rope-let's double dutch! It's time for reading and math and such!” I would like to see what they come up with on their own!

Reviews

From Booklist

No need to visit the zoo to see animals, young scholars—just look at your classmates. From the buzzing “bees” swarming over the playground to the starving pre-lunch “bear” with the rumbling tummy and the “blazing / cardinal, / winging / away” from the rumor of a crush, school is well populated with wild creatures. Salas captures 18 of them in very short, first-person rhymes, and like fugitives from The Island of Dr. Moreau, the children in Salerno’s supple, loosely drawn cartoon illustrations sport an array of evocative animal ears, tails, patterned clothes, and altered facial features. The wild verses are positively shot through with simile and metaphor, and young readers will run just as rampant, flocking to these pitch-perfect portrayals of their peers and selves.